Love Therapy
by Alexandra Condesso
Summary: "Naomi meets Emily at a rough time in her life. Will the pretty red head help her get through it?"
1. New Progress

**AN: Hello lovely people! I have been having the urge to write a new story with a different theme, and after finishing the first chapter I decided to give it a go and publish it, so here it is. I know very well that this might be a bit too much for me, with having to write two stories at the same time, but despite that I still decided to take the plunge.**

 **I hope you enjoy your reading!**

 **Disclamer: This story may be a new one, but Skins still doesn't belong to me.**

* * *

 _Do you know the first time you see a special person. You look at the beauty in front of you and your breath catch down your throat your throat, you even let a small sigh escape your lips. You think "I want to get to know more about this person, I want to talk to them and find out whom they are and what they do in their lives." But you usually end up not doing so because it would be weird and you would look like a creep if you suddenly approached that person and said "hi" to them out of nowhere._

 _Other times, you get lucky enough to having the opportunity of talking to them. Sometimes you don't need to greet them without any particular reason, because they end up doing it themselves._

* * *

 **NAOMI'S POV**

"Miss Naomi Campbell?" I hear a voice calling who just entered the room, and of course I also get to hear small giggles and chatter from other people in this room as well. You would think that a bunch of adults would have the decency to not mock me just because I have the same name as an effing infamous celebrity.

"Yes. It's me." I say getting up and trying to ignore the dumbness around me. When I stand in front of my caller, I immediately stop on my heels as if I had frozen right at this moment. Next to her is a young girl and my god is she beautiful, I have to contain myself not to stare at her with my mouth open almost touching the ground. If you saw her you would understand what I'm saying; red silky hair resting on her shoulders, small inviting pink lips and a pair of amazing chocolate eyes who hold warmth deep inside of them.

"Well Emily, I'll see you next week alright?" The woman who called says to her.

"Yeah, see you then. Bye." The girl answers her and goes out the door.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Jane Wood. Pleasure to meet you." The older woman says, shaking my hand, "Shall we go inside then." And asks holding the door open and letting me in.

She leads me through a corridor and stops in front of another door, opening it and once again motioning for me to get in.

"You can sit down." She says pointing to the sofa while she sits in front on an armchair.

I do as she says and sit on the brown leather cushions, who are surprisingly comfortable.

She smiles at me and I give her a small smile back. The room falls into silence, but an excruciating one as my thoughts are running inside my head telling me either I ran away or say something. The first appeals to me more but I'm brought back to earth as I hear her speak.

"So Naomi, how are you feeling?" Dr. Jane asks me in a sweet voice.

I look at her like a deer caught in headlights, "I don't know… Normal I guess." I mumble shrugging my shoulders.

"I see. What does it mean, feeling normal?" She looks at me with an inquisitive look.

"I… I don't know. Good I guess?" I gulp hard, feeling the usual anxiety running through my veins.

"I'm not sure I believe you." She answers me, "There is a reason why you have decided to come here today."

"Yes, that's true." I nod averting my eyes from her.

"Well Naomi, usually when people come to me it's because they need help to deal with the things that are tormenting them." She continues to say, using the same soft voice.

I maintain my gaze away from hers finding it harder to control my anxiety and starting to feel my breathing get heavier.

"Why don't we start on the small things?" She suggests making me look at her with a scared look, "For instance, how old are you, whom do you live with? What do you like to do?"

Somehow her wanting to know more about me soothed me a bit.

"Ok, I'm 22. Oh, no… sorry. Just turned 23, still not used to the idea." I say earning a small chuckle from her.

"It's ok, go on." She encourages me and I do, "Ahm what else… I like being surrounded by nature, talking a long walk in a park or a garden."

I feel myself relax into the conversation and my speech gets more fluid, "I love reading and listening to music."

"What do you like to read? And listen to?"

"Oh I don't really have a favourite because I can like all kinds of style. Whether it be rock or classical, romance or horror. I like a bit of each kind." I say enthusiastically.

"That's good to know." She gives me a sincere smile, "Does it help you calm down when you're going through a moment of stress?"

"Yes, it really does. Although writing is the one thing that really helps me during the major rough times." I suffice after giving it a bit of thought.

"What do you usually write about?"

"Oh nothing much. Just what I'm feeling and the thoughts that I'm having at that moment."

"I'm glad you've found such a great strategy to deal with it."

"Thank you." I give her a genuine smile, "I've never been much good with talking, so since I've found out how to do it in writing, I sort of became addicted to it."

"There's nothing bad about that. I think it's a pretty healthy strategy." She reassures me, "Maybe someday you could show it to me."

If it had been any other person telling me that, I would told them to fuck off because I would immediately assume they were mocking me. But with her, it's different. She seems genuinely interested in me and what I do. Then again she is _**my**_ therapist, so I guess she does have to be interested in what kind of a person I am.

"Yeah, sure." I would really like to actually, but it's probably gonna take a million years for me to do so.

"Well Naomi, since this is your first consultation with me, I should explain you how this works."

"Ok." I say a bit unsure. She nods and continues, "This will be a safe space for you. Since we have a confidentiality agreement everything we talk here will never leave those doors."

"Alright, sounds good to me." I say emitting a nervous laugh, "Mostly because I would never ever talk about this with anyone, so that's really not an issue."

"Good, I'm glad to know we agree on this. Although if you do feel the need to speak with someone about your appointments, you're free to do so. I'm the one who can never say a word about your process."

"I understand. But still I'll probably won't say anything about it as well."

"Ok, that's your call." She smiles kindly at me, "The other aspect that I want you to know is that we can schedule this the way you want it. Since we are at the beginning I think it's best if you come here every two weeks. During that time, if we see that you would benefit more in coming to an appointment more often, then we'll arrange it the best way we can to make it work."

"So does that mean that if I feel like I need to talk, for instance, on a day when I don't have a consultation, I can ask for one?"

"That's right, you can. But always consider the possibility that I may not be able to attend you right away."

"Hm, I see." I nod in agreement, "And I can talk about anything I want to?"

"Of course. Like I said, this is your space. Everything you feel the need to talk about, you do."

"Ok, thank you." I smile happily at her.

"Well Naomi, for your first day here I think we already talked about some important subjects, so if you're comfortable with it we should call it a day."

"Yes, sure." We get up and she goes to open the door, leading me outside, "Do you need me to accompany you to the exit?" She asks with concern.

"Oh no, no. It's fine, I know the way."

"Alright Naomi, I'll see you in two weeks then. Try and enjoy yourself until then!" She says smiling kindly.

"Thanks, I will! Goodbye." I say and go down the corridor and into the waiting room, getting out from the clinic.

Once I'm out I take a breath of relief feeling the cool air of the evening against my face. Well it wasn't so bad after all. At least I didn't feel like a nutcase, she made me feel… _**normal.**_ Like I hadn't felt for a while lately, she was really nice.

I walk the blocks on my way home and feel a hint of happiness growing inside me as I remember the pretty girl I saw earlier. I hope I'll be able to see her again, at least it serves as an incentive to go to the consultations.

As I get home I don't even have dinner, I'm so tired from the effort of today that I land hard on my bed and fall asleep after only a few seconds. In my dreams the beautiful girl appears and I don't feel so lonely that night. Maybe this is finally my chance of feeling good.

* * *

 **AN: And that's a wrap! Any opinions leave a review, see you next time :)**


	2. Hopefully

**AN: Hello to you all. First I want to thank you for the views and I specially wanna say thanks to the Guest who reviewed the first chapter. It means the world to me that you liked it, but unfortunately I can't answer you privately, so my only hope is that you're reading this right now.**

 **Without further delays, enjoy this new chapter!**

 **Disclamer: SKINS UK doesn't belong to me. However these lovable characters do.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 2**

 **EMILY'S POV**

Beep. Beep. Beep. I smack the fucking bleeping bastard for the third time this morning. Is it too much to ask for a bit of silence? I sigh and decide that it's best to get up, not the brightest idea I've had, seeing as the floor feels like thin ice underneath my feet. It's at times like this that I wish I was already emancipated and not living under my parents' roof, so I could stay comfortable in my bed whenever I feel like it.

"Emily! Get out of that damn room and come eat breakfast!" My _"lovely"_ mother shouts from downstairs.

"Coming!" I yell back, dragging myself out of my room, trying to stay up and awake, but this new pills are making it really hard to do so.

"Here I am…" I say when I get to the kitchen, "Did you really have to yell after I had just woken up?"

My mom takes a deep breath and looks sternly at me, "You know very well that if it wasn't for my _"yelling",_ you would still be playing the role of sleeping beauty."

I look at her coldly, "That morning talk is getting kinda old don't you think? Just like you." I say and turn to go up the stairs again.

"Emily Fitch you get down here right away!" She says following me behind.

"I've lost my appetite." I turn my head back to her, "Enjoy your lonely meal." And say with a fake smile, climbing the steps and running to my room.

I shut the door hard and loud as if doing it would make all this situation disappear. I can't take this anymore, every single day is the same painful routine. Shouting, throwing pills down my throat, crying, freaking out, and crying a bit more. Add work in the middle of that and you have Emily's personal hell.

It all started when I was still in school, finishing my last year. I was always considered an outcast and anti-social kind of person, although I've never identified myself has being neither of them.

Despite all that, I was actually able to deal with being alone during the breaks while the other students hang out and have fun together. It was hard, but I could do it, I was doing it.

And you know, it's funny, because we usually never think it can get worse, but it did. Majorly.

Somehow a rumour spread that I was seeing a shrink, it seems that someone allegedly saw me stepping out of the clinic. It surprises me to be honest, I can't understand how the way I led my life mattered that much to people who had never given a flying fuck about me.

Guess I was wrong, because since that day every time I walked past the corridors or attended classes, there was always whispering and snarky comments thrown at me, accompanied with glances and laughing here and then. I tried to ignore it, I really did, but after a few times I grew tired of it. Going to school became unbearable, which meant that the fighting with my mother started to be more usual every day. She just didn't understand my fears and much less recognized my daily effort. She still doesn't and that's a big problem given my situation. I'm now 19 and still living with her, which only makes me feel worse and incapable.

The only good thing I have in my life right now is Dr. Jane. She is amazing and understands me so well. My consultations with her are the only times of my life where I feel safe and believe that I matter something in this world.

So yesterday I went to another appointment with her and as always I left there feeling a bit well, and I didn't believe the day could get better, because going home would mean more fighting and pain.

Suddenly that changed when I laid my eyes on her. Blonde, piercing blue eyes and tall figure, flawless. I felt my blood boiling deep inside me and I had the need to reach for that girl, to ask her name and who she was. But she soon got in after I said my goodbyes to my doctor and step out of the clinic. They say first impressions are extremely important. If that is indeed the truth, then she most definitely left a print on me; because in that same night I slept a whole lot better than I had these past few months.

Now here's to hoping I get to see her again, maybe this is my chance to have some luck in my life, because after 17 years of dealing with shit, I sure as hell need it.

* * *

After taking my morning pills and eventually getting ready to get out of the house, I meet my mom at her car who is already waiting outside for me.

"Hurry up Emily, we are already short in time." She hushes me to get in and I roll my eyes at her, seating on the passenger side.

"I thought we only had to be there at 10.30?" I say confused while she turns the engine on.

"You do." She says while driving, "I on the other hand have to be there at nine _**sharp**_."

"I'll say it again then; it makes no sense for you to take me so early when I'm perfectly capable of taking a bus." I try to reason with her.

"Because if I don't you'll just stay home mopping around, eventually not getting to work at all."

I don't say anything since it's no use arguing with her. As much as I hate to admit it, she's right. If it wasn't for her I would stay in bed all day and by now had already lost my job, which I didn't lose yet because she's the one who runs the beauty salon, therefore being my boss.

It might be a pain in the arse working with my mother, but at least she has given me a job, so I shouldn't be complaining this much.

A few more silent minutes pass and we arrive at the street where the salon is. She parks the car and goes to open the shop's door, stepping back so I can get in.

I sigh and turn on the lights. It's another day Emily, nothing new here, you just have to go through it for a few hours, and then you'll be back home to your comfy bed waiting for you.

After giving myself a mental pep talk, I try to be nice and polite to the costumers who start to come in and out as the morning passes. It's a tough because I'm still getting used to the new meds, they make me a bit sleepy, but at least I'm starting to feel a bit cheerful.

* * *

It's now midday which means time to take a break and put some food down my belly.

"Mom I'm already finished so I'm gonna grab something to eat down the street." I say grabbing my bag.

"Alright, would you mind bringing me a carrot soup?" She asks lifting her head from some papers she was going through, "I'm still taking care of some things here."

"Sure, no problem." I answer and walk out the door, turning right to make my way to my favourite café around here. It has all kinds of pastry, sandwiches, beverages, great meals, and to top it all it even has good music playing in the background. Do you know how rare it is nowadays to find an establishment with good music on? And it's so well decorated, with a vintage look that makes it really cosy. To be honest, I'd much rather work here than at my mom's salon. But like I said earlier, I'm lucky to even have a job. So, no complaining for me.

I sit on a table near the window with a view for the street outside, I like to watch the passers-by and imagine how their lives must be and what they do, what kind of person they are. It entertains me, makes me forget about my problems.

"Hey beautiful lady!" A boy says approaching me, "It's good to see you again." He grins at me.

"Hey Alan!" I greet him with a smile, "Likewise. How are you?"

He sits in front of me, "Oh you know, same old song. Jason and I had a fight, again."

I laugh at him as he rolls his eyes, "Seriously Em! At the beginning it was cute, but after a while it gets boring."

I give him a sympathetic look, "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Thank you." Alan sighs, "I think I'm gonna break up with him."

"Why? You look so happy together."

"That's just the thing. We _"look"_ happy, but we aren't." He says with a sad voice.

"Well, if you think that's what's best for you, then you have my support." I smile, trying to make him feel better.

"Thanks Emily, you are an amazing girl." He smiles back, "And now I should really get back to work, before the boss over there fires me."

"Oh ok, I'll have the usual then." I say, making my order.

"Alright! A tuna and egg sandwich and… a carrot soup?" He asks writing it down.

"Yep that's it and also a strawberry juice please."

"Is that all?" I think for a while, "Ah yes. The soup is for my mom, so if you could put it in a bag I'll appreciate it."

"Of course pretty girl, right away!" He says and goes to the counter.

Alan is also one of the reasons I like to come here to have lunch and relax every time I get the chance. He's always so kind and nice to me, it's a shame we don't get to hang out more.

After a few minutes my food arrives and I dig in as if I have not eaten for days. But to be fair with myself I did not have breakfast and like I said earlier the meals here are delicious.

When I'm finishing the last bites Alan comes back and sits in front of me again.

"So Emily, how have you been feeling lately?" If it was another person asking I would instantly assume that they were feigning worry towards me. But Alan is different, he genuinely cares.

"Better I guess. I think the new meds are starting to work." I say shrugging my shoulders.

"Oh that's great! I'm glad to know." He flashes me a big smile that makes me smile back.

"Yeah it is. It seems that this time I may be able to get through."

"Of course. I believe you can do it! And I'm here for you beautiful, don't you forget that." Alan says winking at me.

I feel myself blush and say shyly, "Thanks, I appreciate it."

We share a couple of seconds in silence until I realize that my lunch break is over, "Ups, I have to get back to the salon now or my mom is going to kill me." I say getting up hurriedly but Alan stops me, and gives me a hug.

I stand there a bit awkward, I'm not used to this much affection. However, coming from him it kinda feels good so I try to return it.

When Alan lets go of me he pats my head gently, "Come by more often, maybe after you're done with work?" He asks smiling.

"Yeah, sounds good. I will." I say getting the door and turn my head back, "Thanks!"

As I'm walking out the door I bump into someone, making me stumble back a bit.

"Auch!" I hear the other person say and look up to see them. No fucking way!

"Oh god, I'm so sorry I bumped into you. Are you ok?" The blonde that got stuck in my head from yesterday asks me. This can't be happening. Am I tripping from the new meds? Oh for Pete's sake, answer her Emily!

"Sorry?" I follow her gaze to the ground where my bag has landed, "Oh yeah, yeah, I am. No worries." And pick up my bag.

"I'm sorry as well. I shouldn't be walking while talking." I say with a nervous laugh.

"Ah don't mention it." She stares at me for a second, "Hey, I think I know you…"

I'm going to say something but she beats me to it, "Ah! I remember now, you were at the Roundview Clinic yesterday weren't you?" She asks me a bit unsure.

"Yes." I answer in a hoarse and low voice, feeling the need to clear my throat, "Yes I was. I remember you as well. Naomi was it?" I ask her carefully, trying to not overstep her boundaries, "You had an appointment with Dr. Jane right?"

"I did." She states smiling, "I'm surprised you remember my name."

"Well not too hard to memorize, given the fact that you're named after a supermodel." I answer her smugly.

"Yeah… My mom kinda screwed me up with that."

We share some laughter and stand there for a couple of seconds just staring at each other.

"So… I should go now. I have to get to work." I say awkwardly, trying to break the silence.

"Right, of course. Silly me." She says blushing and giving me a shy smile, "I should get going as well."

I nod and turn to leave but her voice stops me, "Wait."

"Yeah?" I ask looking back at her and she answers, "It was nice meeting you again, _**Emily.**_ "

"Likewise _**Campbell**_." I say back earning a laugh from her and again turning to leave.

"I'll see you around!" She calls from behind me, walking away as well.

"Hopefully…" I whisper to myself.

* * *

 **AN: Ok so our girls meet once again, only this time with more interaction. Let's see what the future holds for them. Any reviews will be very much appreciated and see you next chapter ;)**


	3. Types of Mothers

**AN: Hello beautiful people! Thanks for all the views and once more I want to specially thank you "Guest", for having reviewed the two previous chapters. I was glad to know that you understood whom I was referring to :)**

 **I'm also grateful to another "Guest" and to "BelinhaM" for having reviewed the last chapter.**

 **Now that all that is done, enjoy this new chapter!**

 **Disclamer: Skins UK not mine. This story is.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 3**

 **NAOMI'S POV**

After the pleasant encounter I return to work in no time and see I already have a client.

"Hey Anna! How are you today?" I ask the old lady who's checking out our flowers.

"Oh hello dear." She greets me with her signature kind smile, "I'm good, just seeing what kind of flowers you have today. They are always so pretty."

"Ahah yes they are. But all the merit goes to Gina, you know she's the one who takes care of them." I smile to her.

"What are you two ladies talking about here outside?" My mom steps out the door, "Ah Anna, it had to be you. You just can't resist my amazing flowers." She says laughing.

"I really can't Gina. I'm always surprised at how you can keep them so pretty and healthy for so long." Anna tells her amused.

"Oh well, some people are just born to do it." My mom says and the turns at me, "Naomi, I'm glad you're back. What took you so long? I was starting to get worried."

"Ah no need to. I just ran into someone and got hold up for a bit." I say smiling, a bit too much for my liking.

"Oh? I didn't know you had friends around here?" My mom asks curious.

"I don't, it was just an acquaintance." I answer, this time trying to disguise how much I liked seeing Emily.

"Hm… I see. Quite an acquaintance to leave you smiling like that." She says raising her eyebrows and smirking.

"Yeah, whatever. I better go inside and finish doing the flowers' arrangements." I say disregarding the subject.

"Ok love, I'll be there in a minute." My mom says from behind me.

"So Gina, how is she doing lately?" I hear Anna asking her. You know, when you learn from a very young age to pay attention of what's going on around you, as you reach adulthood you pretty much can understand every conversation near you. Even better when the subject is you.

"Ah you know how it is. Some days better than the others, but I think she's feeling well." My mom answers.

It makes my heart clench at seeing them so concerned about me, especially my mom. Since the accident she has been the best support I could ever ask for. I know for certain that if it wasn't for her, I'd probably be in the gutter by now. She was my saviour and I will never be able to thank her enough for it.

One of the ways she has found to make me feel safe, was getting me a job at her flower shop, even though we hadn't really talked in a long time. She owed me nothing, yet from the very first moment I needed her, she was there by my side holding my hand.

Since then our relationship started to grow more each day and although it may be hard for me to admit it, I'm immensely glad it did.

"Love, how's it going with the flowers there?" She asks me, getting in and approaching the table where I'm working at.

"Hm… I think I'm getting better at it." I step back to let her take a look, "What do you think?"

"Uau it's really good." She says admiring the arrangement, "I have got to watch my back or soon enough you'll surpass me." And laughs, making me laugh as well.

"Ah nah, I could never be as good as you." I look straight at her, "You're amazing."

"Aww!" She hugs me close to her, "You're amazing too, my pretty flower."

I wriggle myself from her embrace, "Alright it's getting too cheesy now." I smile and she grins at me.

"Ok, well, I need to go back there to check our storage." My mom says heading to the back of the shop, "Be back in a bit."

I nod and resume my task. Anna is right, they really are beautiful. Especially the red carnations, they were always my mom's favourites. I remember her telling me that they reminded her of her own mother. She was Portuguese and only came to England when she married my mom's father. Despite that she never forgot her roots and used to tell my mother all about her country and her life there. My mother learned that in her country a red carnation meant liberty, due to a civil movement to end the dictatorship there.

If you knew Gina nowadays you would understand why she has such a strong-willed spirit about going against everything that represents oppression of the people and such. It seems that she took it after my grandmother, which I find fascinating to be honest. To keep her mother's ideals deep within her after so many years. It's a shame I didn't get to know the lady, I believe we would get along very well.

When I'm finished I pick up the arrangement and set it on the window display so people can see it from outside. I love going outside and see how it looks from there, you know, from the perspective of the buyer. It's a sense of pride to see my work looking good, so I decide to go outside like I always do.

I stand there admiring our display of various flowers and other arrangements made by my mom. It's magnificent to see how all the types and colours mix together, it was indeed a brilliant idea for me to work here.

"Those are beautiful." A voice grabs me from my thoughts and I notice there's a reflection of someone on the window, behind me. I turn around to see who it is.

"Hey again." Emily says with a shy voice. I look at her stunned, at this time of the day the sun is bright up in the sky and it's making her gorgeous red hair shine like an ignited flame.

"Hey…" I stutter, "Again. How did you know I was here?" I smack my forehead internally, could I sound more presumptuous?

"Ahm… I didn't." She answers awkwardly, "I was just taking a walk around the street and couldn't help but stop to see the flowers."

"Yes, of course." I scratch the back of my neck nervously, "That makes much more sense."

She chuckles, "Do you work here, Campbell?" And asks biting her lips playfully.

"Depends, will you drop the last name?" I say back raising my eyebrows and stepping closer to her, noticing how petite she is next to me.

"You really don't like being called that do you?"

"If you had spent all your teenage years hearing the _"throwing a shoe at you"_ joke, you would also get fed up with it."

She nods, "You're right, I get it. Consider it dropped." And smiles softly.

"Thank you, and yes, I do work here. This is my mom's shop actually."

"Uau really? That's so cool." Emily says impressed, "You're lucky."

"Yeah, it's a pretty relaxing job, being surrounded with tiny samples of nature."

"I believe you. It sure beats mine." I notice a hint of bitterness on her voice.

"What kind of work do you have?" I ask her genuinely interested.

"One that has nothing to do with me at all."

"And what would that be?"

"A beauty salon, down the street." She points with her head behind.

"Yep. It sounds boring as hell." I give her a sympathetic look, "It must be hard having to wax old ladies' intimate parts every day."

"Oh god, no! Thank fuck I don't need to do that" She gives a throaty laugh, "That's my mom's job, I'm just the receptionist."

"Oh, that's a relief." I smile at her, "I was already coming up with a plan to rescue from there."

"You can do it anyway, I'd love to." She smirks at me. Uau, this girl is bold, is she flirting with me?

"Alright Emily, we've got a deal then." I reach my hand out for her to shake.

"Great." She shakes my hand, "I'll be waiting Naomi." And says adding while holding my hand for a few seconds more.

My heart's pounding so fast and I feel adrenaline rushing through me, the only thing that's crossing my mind is that I want to spend more time with this girl.

She ends up letting go of my hand and a feeling of hollowness sets inside of me. Why am I this way? I just met her, this can't be normal.

"So I have to get going now, but it was really nice seeing you again Naomi." She smiles and turns to leave, but I grab her arm.

She looks at my grasp confused and I let go, "Sorry… I just wanted to know if I could have your number?"

"Oh yeah sure! Just give me your phone and I'll type it." She asks smiling.

I take my phone out of my pocket and hand it to her. She types it in a couple of seconds.

"Ok, there you go." She hands it back to me, "Make sure to text me so I can get yours as well." And winks walking away down the street.

"I will!" I shout to make sure she hears me and I hear her shout back, "Great!"

I'm left standing in front of the shop with a huge smile on my face, I can't believe this has just happened. Me, Naomi, being nice to a stranger. Although I would have to be a gigantic idiot if I didn't grab the opportunity to get to know a girl as nice and beautiful as she is.

"So I gather that's the acquaintance you mentioned earlier?" My mom asks from behind me.

"Jesus, mom!" I say with my hand against my chest, "How many times have I told you to not creep in on me like that?"

"Ahah! Sorry love, but I couldn't help it." She smiles at me, "That girl is pretty. Didn't seem like just an acquaintance to me."

"Well she is. We just met yesterday, at the clinic."

"Oh…" My mom says a bit sad, "So she must be going through a rough time as well."

I try to change the subject, "I don't know, it doesn't really matter." I smile, "She's nice and seems like a kind person, that's what I care for."

My mom gives me a big smile and puts her arm around my shoulders, holding me close to her, "I'm glad you see things like that. I'm proud, I see I raised you well."

I chuckle and say playfully, "Shut up." Earning a laugh from her. This is what I like, being with my mom like this. Joking with each other and talking openly.

If I had to make a balance of todays, I would rate it an 8 out of 10. Work went well, my mom and I are good, and most of all I've got Emily's number! Ah speaking of which, I have a text to send.

" _To: Emily_

 _Hey! Naomi here, the Campbell one._

 _Just to make sure you've got my number. Bye"_

And it's sent. Now comes the worst part, the waiting. Well I'll just keep myself occupied for the time being, she's probably doing the same. I'm sure she must have better things to do than text me, maybe she won't even do it today. Ok now I'm overthinking it, damn.

 ***Bzzr*** I feel my cell vibrating against my thigh, a new message flashing on the screen:

" _From: Emily_

 _Hey, I thought we had agreed not to call you that?"_

Uau that was fast. I grin to the little device on my hands and type an answer as fast as I can:

" _To: Emily_

 _Let's just call it a onetime thing ;)"_

I sent back. Maybe the wink was too much…

 ***Bzzr***

" _From: Emily_

 _Alright._

 _Listen, I have to go now._

 _My mom's all over me nagging about using my phone at work -.-_

 _I'll text you when I get home? If that's ok with you?"_

I smile at the fact that she wants to keep talking to me, it seems that the wink wasn't too much after all. I type another text:

" _To: Emily_

 _Of course, no problem. Feel free to do so :)_

 _Half an hour or so and I'll be done with work as well."_

 ***Bzzr***

" _From: Emily_

 _Copy that :)_

 _Later! Xx"_

Two kisses at the end? She just made my day get even better! I think this is gonna be a good thing.

* * *

 **AN: Ok, there you have it. I've gotta tell you, I'd never thought that writing text messages inside this kind of story was so hard. But hey, at least I'm learning new things. Anyway... I hope you liked it and feel free to leave a review. Until next time :)**


	4. Mexican Soap Opera

**AN: Hello beautiful people! I'm so sorry I took forever to upload a new chapter but it's been hard to concentrate and write. I wasn't going to post this today, because my idea was making it bigger. But seeing that it was taking too long for me to update, I decided to split what I was writing in two, which means that I'm already working on the next one.**

 **Moving on to the special mentions. Thank you to TeenAge Riot99, you've been with me since the beginning, never failing in supporting me. It makes me very happy that you're with me on this story as well (also, go check out her stories, she's an amazing writer).**

 **I also wan to thank** **Webmutfsa for reviewing the last chapter, and many thanks for the rest of you who view, follow and favourite. I truly apreciate it :)**

 **That is all, enjoy your reading!**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 4**

 **EMILY'S POV**

I let out a breath of relief as I got home, the excruciating hours of putting up with my mom finally over. At least for today.

However, this day seemed lighter than the usual ones. I guess a certain blonde contributed to that and I owe her more than a text.

As soon as I'm up and locked in my room I grab my phone and dial Naomi's number.

I bite my nails nervously waiting for her to pick up, after a couple of seconds which seemed like an eternity, she does.

" _Hello?"_

I smile as I hear her voice, "Hey Naomi. It's Emily, you know, from before?"

She laughs on the other side of the line, _"I know it's you Emily. My memory may be a bit bad, but I still can remember who it was I was talking with a few minutes prior."_

I chuckle at that, "Right, got it."

Silence falls between us and I start to think that maybe I was a tad too forward. I can't help but walk back and forth around the room, trying to ease my anxiety.

" _So why did you call?"_ She asks, thankfully breaking the silence.

"Oh, you know just…" Come on Emily, think of something, "…wanted to know if you got home safe?" Well it wasn't your smartest move, but you dodge the _sounding desperate_ bullet.

" _Ahah, how nice of you. I did, thanks for asking."_ She pauses, _"What about you? Was it too bad with your mom afterwards?"_

"What do you mean?" I ask confused and stop immediately on my tracks. Does she know I still live with my mom?!

" _Well you said she was nagging you about using your phone…"_

"Ah yes, yes! Ahm… She eventually shut up."

" _Good to know."_ Her concern sounds genuine, I'm really not used to that. Apart from my doctor that is.

"Emily! Dinner is ready!" I hear my mom shout from downstairs.

" _Did I hear someone shouting or was it just in my head?"_ Oh shit.

"Ah! It's just the telly, some Mexican soap opera."

" _Speaking English? Uau, they sure are upgrading their levels."_

"Yeah I guess…" Really Emily? Boy oh boy, are your lying skills rusty.

" _Anyway, I have to go. Unfortunately my oven hasn't yet learned how to cook a meal all by itself, so the task to make myself dinner is on me."_

I laugh at her sense of humour, "Alright, have a nice dinner then." I say, although it makes me a tiny little bit sad having to say goodbye to Naomi and return to my reality.

" _You too."_ I was about to hang up but it seems she isn't done speaking, _"Maybe I'll see you tomorrow? Same place?"_

A huge grin marks my face, "Actually, I have a better idea. I usually have lunch in a café near work."

" _Ah the one with the food that looks like it was made from angel's dust?"_

"Ahah! Exactly that one. I was thinking maybe you could have lunch with me?"

There's yet another pause from her side of the line, and I'm almost sure that this time I went too far.

" _Sure, sounds good. What time do you want to meet there? I usually have my break at 12.30, but I can make it work depending on yours."_

"Nah that's perfect. I also get done at that hour, so all good."

" _Great. I'll see you tomorrow then, have a good night."_

"Yeah, you too. Oh and have a nice dinner."

" _Ahah, thanks. Although considering my cooking skills, I'll be lucky if I get out of the kitchen with my two eyebrows still intact."_

Hell, this woman really has a great sense of humour, "Ahah I sure hope so. I don't want to be seen with you looking like that."

" _Tsk tsk, now that was just mean. Too bad, might have to cancel on you."_ She says with a playful tone that makes me chuckle.

"Poor me. I guess I'll just have to find another pretty blonde to have lunch with me."

" _Pretty eh?"_ I instantly blush at realizing what I just said, _"I've got to say, thank you for the boost of confidence."_

I utter a nervous giggle, "Sure, anytime."

Before Naomi could answer I hear a loud knock on my door, "Emily! What are you up to in there? Dinner is getting cold!"

My heart starts pounding like crazy, "Ahm Naomi, sorry, but I gotta go." I hang up without even let her speak and open the door quickly, "What? I can't even be alone and peaceful in my own room?" I yell at my mom, only inches apart from her face.

She steps back and takes a deep breath, "I just don't want you to starve dear." And tries to flash a smile, which she fails miserably. I haven't seen her giving me a heartfelt smile for so many years now, that I even lost count.

Anyway, I decide to obey her will and go have dinner with her. We sit on our usual spots at the table, facing each other quietly.

"You never got to tell me how it went yesterday with Dr. Jane." She says between a couple of sips of soup.

I shrug my shoulders, "It was fine, normal. Like always." I really don't wanna have this conversation. Every time we do she ends up asking when I will be done with the appointments. Will I need medication forever? Do I even need medication after all this time?

"The son of a friend of mine's only needed a year of seeing a shrink and he's fixed now." My mom says nonchalant, as if what she just said is acceptable and correct.

"What the fuck do you mean by _**"fixed"**_?!" I spat angrily and I'm pretty sure fume is coming out of my ears.

"Emily! Don't you raise your voice at me."

"You even have the nerve to scold me about yelling when _**you**_ just offended me?!"

She scoffs, "Ah! How have I offended you? I'm just trying to show how concerned I am about you honey."

"Don't honey me!" I get up quickly grabbing my plate and throwing it in the sink, "I've lost my appetite."

"Emily you sit down right this instant and finish your meal!"

At this rate I don't even reward her with an answer, all I want is to be left alone and in peace. What better place other than my room? As usual I lock the door and throw myself on my bed, sighing as I hear her voice coming from outside.

"This isn't over! You can't just leave whenever you feel like it."

Shut up. Shut up. Shut up! I repeatedly say in my head, as if doing so would make this entire situation end.

Eventually it does, but at this moment I already have warm tears streaming down my face and I'm trying to control my sobbing.

I don't know how long it took for me to fall asleep, but I guess it mustn't have taken too long considering how tiring all this is.

* * *

 **NAOMI'S POV**

After the call with Emily I'm left with a grin on my face. It was nice talking to her.

Oh Naomi who are you trying to kid? It was more than nice, great actually.

Somehow I feel an easiness about it. Usually my anxiety would go up until it reached the ceiling, but this time it didn't.

Sure I was nervous and there were a couple of awkward silences, but I was able to break them, yeay me!

Any who, I have a dinner to cook so let me check the fridge and see what I can do with what I have. Hm… A couple of eggs, ham, cheese… Well an omelette it is then, at least that I know for sure I won't burn. Since I've been cooking it at least once a week, but hey it could be worse.

After a few minutes with the frying pan I'm presented with the delicious result in front of me.

Ok not _**delicious**_ , but it's something and it serves the purpose of feeding my belly.

When I'm done with cleaning the dishes I decide to watch some television until the sleepiness comes to me. I plop into the couch and stretch myself entirely over it, enjoying the feeling of finally being at rest after a day of work. As I'm zapping through the channels my mind wanders off to something more interesting, or rather, someone.

I stop and grab my phone from the table next to me, going through the texts I exchanged with Emily earlier. My face turns into a big smile while reading them but it ends up fading when I remember how abruptly she hang up on me. One minute we were being playful and the next one she sounded weird all of a sudden. Could it be that she regretted having agreed to lunch with me? Maybe I should call her… But I don't want to disturb her, much less at this hour of the night.

I sigh and decide that it's best to leave it for tomorrow, either way I'm already feeling sleepy so I might as well go to bed.

* * *

 **AN: Short, very short I know, but I hope you liked it. Any opinions just leave a review, and I'll try to update the next chapter sooner than this one was.**


	5. Angry Birds for Lunch

**AN: Hello? Are you still there? I'm so sorry for having taking so long to finish and publish this chapter. As some of you may already know, there have been a few sites mirroring and copying all the content from our oficial one, . Because of this I lost a bit of my will to write and publish for a while, but I felt the need to get back on track and decided that I owed you all something new.**

 **I also have good news, all the websites except one, have all been taken down already. So all we have to do is hope that the last one will be taken down as well.**

 **Lastly I want to thank you "mynameislizzie" and "TeenAgeRiot99" for always taking the time to support me and my story. You both are amazing, and go check out their stories because they're amazing as well. I also thank all of you who view, review, follow and add my story to your favourites, I really appreciate it and you guys are amazing as well.**

 **Now an extemely important mention, I'm deeply thankful to "BelinhaM" for being with me this last few weeks, supporting and putting up with my fears and insecurities about this story and more. Thank you so so much, you're a wonderful person, and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well since you helped building it :)**

 **With all that settled, enjoy your reading!**

 **Disclamer: SKINS UK is not mine, only the story is.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 5**

 **NEXT MORNING**

 **NAOMI'S POV**

I feel the sunlight on my skin and I open my eyes slowly, adjusting myself to the brightness.

Grabbing my phone by the bedside table I check the time, 9.00 AM. Alright, plenty of time to get ready, usually my mom only needs me at the shop around 10.00 AM, it's one of the privileges of working there.

I go to the bathroom to take a shower and get dressed up. The same old, a t-shirt, skinny jeans, all-stars, and I'm all set to go.

After going downstairs and having eaten my breakfast I check the time again, 9.45 AM. I grab my jacket, bag and keys, and make my way to the car locking the door behind me.

Fifteen minutes later, given or taken, I'm already parked outside work and can already see my mom's taking care of her precious babies.

"Hey there." I greet her with a smile, "How are you this fine morning?"

She looks at me with a questioning look, raising her eyebrows, "What did you do with my daughter?"

I scoff at her, still smiling, "Can't I be in a good mood?"

She grins at me, "Of course, it's just a nice change, that's all." And gives me a kiss on the cheek.

I clear my throat, "Alright, what do you want me to do today?"

"Well, we have a special arrangement to deliver an hour away from here, so I was thinking you could go there while I take care of other things around here."

I nod, "Ok, what time do you want me to go?"

"Hm…Maybe leaving here at 11? And don't worry about your lunch hour, you can take the time you need afterwards." My mom says smiling softly.

"Oh…" I frown slightly, "Is it possible if I go there right away?"

She squints at me with curiosity, "Why hurry up when you just got here? You can help me until that time comes and then take off."

I scratch the back of my neck nervously, "Well… I'm sort of meeting someone at lunch."

Her mouth shapes in an "o", "That's a first. It must be someone important to make you go out the store just to eat."

I giggle nervously, "No, just a friend, nothing much." My mom raises an eyebrow at me, "Sure, just a friend. Alright go on then, the arrangement is on the counter. If you have any questions once you get there, just give me a call."

"Thanks, I'll be on my way then. See you later." I say taking the flowers to my car.

I ended up arriving ahead on time, fortunately I was lucky enough to not catch any traffic, which means that driving to the clients only took me half an hour.

Once I take the flowers out of the car, I make my way to the building and look for the store. Let's see… Mom said it would be the one with the big pink and yellow sign. Ah! There it is, _"Saint Peter's Bakery"_.

"Good morning!" I say as I enter the shop, "I'm here to deliver the flower arrangement you ordered."

"Ah yes, come in!" A nice lady approaches me and takes the arrangement out of my hands, "This is the place. Oh my, such beautiful flowers!"

I chuckle at her delightful expression, "I'm glad you liked it. It's good to know it was worth the effort."

"Most definitely!" The woman says placing the arrangement on a table, "Thank you so much!" She says giving a huge and sincere smile.

I smile back at her, "It's our pleasure, really. Have a nice day" I say starting to leave but her voice stops me, "Oh wait! Before you go, take some of our pastries with you."

I look at her a bit embarrassed, "Ah no, it's ok you don't have to." I try to say but she insists, "C'mon love, don't be shy. Here you go, I'm sure there's plenty enough for you and your mom." The woman says handing me a small package with a tiny lace on top of it, "Now you go and tell your mom how much I loved her flowers, and enjoy your sweets." She says grinning at me while I leave the store.

"Thank you very much, it's very kind of you." I say stepping out the door and she waves goodbye saying, "Stop by anytime!"

I leave there with a goofy smile on my face, this lady was really nice. Great way to start my morning.

* * *

 **AT LUNCH**

Naomi walks in the café and spots Emily's vibrant red hair right away, the girl sitting on a side window booth.

"Stupid dirty little pigs! Should have killed you already…" She hears her mumble as she approaches the table.

"Ahm… Emily?" Naomi asks her, with a puzzled look on her face, "Everything alright?"

The red headed quickly looks up at her with a frightened look, almost as if she was just caught doing something wrong. She then follows Naomi's gaze to her smartphone and blushes.

"Ah yeah, I was just killing time waiting for you." Emily says turning the device off.

"Hm… I guess I've misheard then. I thought you said you were _"killing pigs"."_ Naomi smirks with a mocking look on her face.

Emily smiles rolling her eyes at the blonde, "Fine, I was playing _"Angry Birds"_ on my phone."

Naomi giggles at her with amusement, trying hard to contain her laughter.

"C'mon, laugh all you want." And she does just that, catching the attention of other costumers, "Yes, yes, very funny. For your information it's a rather entertaining game." Emily says crossing her arms to her chest.

"I'm just messing with you Em, I know the game. Although I'm more of a " _Sonic"_ girl."

Emily raises her eyebrows, "Really? You're making fun of me me even though you like to impersonate a blue hedgehog?"

"Who runs like hell?! I don't even know why we're discussing this." Naomi says trying to defend herself, smirking at the red head.

"You started it, but you're right. Enough with the talk, I'm starving." Emily says waving at the waiter to come at their table.

"Hey there my red headed beauty!" Alan greets her with a smile, "Oh? And who might this pretty blonde be?" He asks with surprised amusement, turning his head to Naomi.

She looks at him blushing and goes to answer but Emily intervenes for her, "She's Naomi, a friend of mine." She says with a big smile plastered on her face.

"I see, pleasure to meet you Naomi. My name is Alan and I'm Emily's favourite waiter." He smiles and bows in front of the blonde, making her chuckle, "Pleasure to meet you to Alan."

"He's also a huge geek and the _**only**_ nice person here, so I'm pretty much stuck with him." Emily says smirking at his offended look.

"Ah, you cheeky bitch! Just for that I'll call Diane and ask her to take care of your orders. I'm sure she will love the extra tips." Alan says smirking smugly at Emily.

The red headed looks at him with eyes wide open, "No, no, no! You know I can't stand her, she's such a stuck up bitch." She says pleading him with a childlike voice.

He laughs softly at her, "I'm just kidding, I would never leave you with that idiot." Alan says and turns to Naomi, "Anyway, what will you lovely ladies have?"

Naomi looks at Emily, "Ahm I don't know. What do you recommend?"

"Well I usually have a chicken and mayonnaise sandwich, but either one of them are great. Oh and a strawberry juice."

The blonde nods at her and turns to Alan, "Alright then I'll have the same."

The waiter smiles softly at her, "You're gonna love it. Everything here is great and I'm not just saying that because it's my work."

Both girls smile at him and he goes to the counter to prepare their orders. Naomi smirks at Emily, "If I don't like it it's your fault." She says teasing the red head.

"Ah! It's not my fault if your tastes are too exquisite to enjoy this kind of place." Emily says faking being offended.

"Ahah! I'm just messing with you, I'm sure I'll like it." The blonde says still smirking at the other girl.

They stay in a silence but only lasts a couple of seconds until Emily breaks it, "So how was your morning? Too much work?"

Naomi lets out a small sigh pursing her lips, "Hm I actually almost had to cancel on you."

Emily's eyes go wide, "What? Why?" She asks concerned.

"Don't worry it was nothing bad." The blonde says trying to ease the look on the red head's face, "My mom asked me to deliver an arrangement to a client, which meant I would be late to our lunch."

"Don't tell me you didn't go because of me?" Emily asks with a hint of guilt on her eyes.

Naomi smiles softly at her, "Nah, I just agreed with her to let me deliver it sooner so I could be here on time."

Emily looks at her surprised, "Uau, you did that just so we could have lunch?"

"Well as the human being I am, I do sometimes have the need to eat." She answers her playfully.

"Ah I see, that was the only reason then?" Emily asks raising her eyebrows.

"Yep, one and only." Naomi says pausing for a bit waiting for the girl's reaction, but she just stares at her, "Fine, it was also because I was having lunch with you."

Emily rolls her eyes and grins at her, "Ah what a relief!" She says letting out a fake sigh, "Phew, I was starting to think that you just took pity on me."

"Yeah well don't get too cocky, you were the only one who would have lunch with me."

"Geez you don't give it a break do you?" Emily asks chuckling, "You go from nice to cheeky in a heartbeat."

Naomi chuckles herself, "Oh well what can I say? I'm a special kind of charming." She says smirking at her.

Emily smirks back and gazes softly at her, "I guess you are."

The blonde blushes and looks away from her, but Emily doesn't let her go so easily, "You're also quite cute blushing like that." She says raising her eyebrows at her.

Naomi rolls her eyes, "Sure, make fun of my blushing face. I'm sure that will make it go away." She says with a playful tone of sarcasm.

Emily giggles, "I'm sorry I couldn't help it." She says and turns her head up a bit, "Oh here comes Alan with our food."

Naomi chuckles at the childish expression on the girl's face, smiling to herself.

"Here you go ladies, two chicken sandwiches and two strawberry juices." Alan says placing their food on the table, "Enjoy your meal." He says winking as he goes to attend other costumers.

Both girls say thank you and look at each other in silence, "Well what are we waiting for?" Emily asks and grabs her sandwich, "Bonne appétit."

Naomi giggles at her and grabs her own sandwich as well, "Merci." She says trying her best French. Emily chuckles at her bad accent and she shoots her a look that says, _"Just drop it"_.

It has been two minutes since they started to eat and Naomi puts her food down, "Hm that's right, I never you asked how _**your**_ morning was?"

Emily gulps down some juice and looks at the window, "It was fine." She says shrugging her shoulders and then turning her eyes back to Naomi, "Same old."

Naomi gives her a small smile, "Well at least you get to spend your lunch with me. Lucky you." She says trying to get a smile from the red head and grins when the girl does so, "Yes, lucky me." Emily says softly smiling at her, gazing at her blue eyes, "You know you have really beautiful eyes." She says with a look of wonder, admiring their beauty.

Naomi clears her throat nervously, "Thank you, I guess?"

"I've always wanted to have blue or green eyes. They're so much more beautiful than plain old boring brown ones." Emily says showing discontentment and Naomi looks at her surprised, "You're kidding right?" She asks the red head who has now her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. The blonde decides to explain her point of view, "I never understood why people define beauty by colour. For me what makes it beautiful is the way a person's eyes shine when they are happy or sad. It's the way they show who the person really is, you know? For instance, your eyes are very pretty, they show kindness and warmth."

Emily has now a stupid smirk of surprise on her face at Naomi's words, and the blonde suddenly feels embarrassed, "Ok that sounded totally creepy and lame." She says with making the red head laugh.

"Yeah it did, but just a tiny bit." Emily says making the blonde chuckle, "However it's good to know you see me like that." She says smiling kindly.

Naomi shrugs her shoulders, "Again, do not get too cocky on me alright?" She says teasing Emily.

"Who me? Never!" Emily says exaggerating the last word, making Naomi laugh at her.

After that they both continue to enjoy their meals and fall into an easy chat, until they end up reaching a more serious subject.

"So you have been seeing Dr. Jane for a while, is that it?" Naomi asks the red head.

"Yes, it has been two years now." Emily says with a small smile.

"Wow, that much?" Naomi asks surprised, "Not that I think there's anything wrong with it, I just didn't know that these things could take so long."

"Yeah most people don't even realize it, but it usually takes a very long time to get through whatever your problem may be." The red head says shrugging her shoulders.

"I see…" Naomi pauses for a bit pondering about what she's going to say next, "But you will feel better eventually right? I mean, do you feel better?" She asks carefully, trying not to pry too much.

Emily gives her a sideways smile, "Yes, I definitely do. Therapy has been a great help, in fact, at the beginning it was my only help." She pauses thinking, "But I'm much better now and I learned how to hold on to other healthy things."

Naomi smiles genuinely at her, "That's great! I'm happy for you."

"Thanks!" Emily says smiling back, "What about you? I had never seen you at the clinic."

The blonde flashes her a nervous smile, "It's very recent for me. The day you saw me there was actually my first one."

The red head eyes her with curiosity, "Oh, what was it like?"

Naomi bites her lip pondering about it, "Hm… It was definitely weird and awkward. Extremely awkward, because… I don't know, it's nerve-wracking. You get there, meet your doctor for the first time and you immediately have to pour out everything that belongs inside of you."

Emily nods, "Yes I agree with you. The first couple of times can be very hard. Especially because you want to say so many things but at the same you're afraid of saying too much…"

"And sound like a lunatic!" Naomi interrupts finishing her sentence.

"Exactly!" Emily agrees giving a small chuckle, "But I gotta tell you, it gets easier."

Naomi looks at her with a not so convinced look, "Hm I find that hard to believe."

Emily looks her directly in the eyes and says with a firm voice, "Trust the word of someone who's been on this for a while now." She says earning a small smile from Naomi, "I promise you."

Naomi's smile gets wider, "Ok, I'll take your word for it." Emily grins at her, "You better!"

Both girls start to giggle for a bit and then silence falls between them, while they finish the rest of their meals.

"Well…" Emily says drinking the last bit of her juice, "I should get back to work."

Naomi nods, "Alright, I have to go as well." She says and both of them get up, making their way to the counter.

"Ah you've finished already?" Alan says sadly once he sees them, "It's always a shame to see my favourite costumers leaving."

"Aww don't be sad, you know I'll be back tomorrow." Emily says kindly, trying to cheer him up.

Alan flashes her a broad smile, "Excellent! And I hope to see you as well Naomi." He says turning to the blonde.

She gives a nervous smile, "Yeah sure, I'll try to." She says and grabs her wallet from her bag, "So, how much was it all?" She asks the smiling boy.

"Ahm, Naomi?" Emily asks with a puzzled look, "What are you doing?"

Naomi looks at her shrugging her shoulders, "I'm paying for our meals." She says with a nonchalant tone.

The read head rolls her eyes, "Yes I can see that." She says grabbing her own wallet and taking some money off it, "Here you go Alan…" She says dropping £4.50 on the counter and giving him a smile, "That should cover my part."

"Emily…" Naomi tries to say but the smaller girl interrupts her, "I can pay for my own things, thank you very much." She gives her a cold look, "I'll be outside. See you tomorrow Alan, take care." She says turning around to leave.

Naomi stands with a confused look on her face, "What just happened? Did I do something wrong?" She asks the boy and he shows her a warm look, "It has nothing to do with you. Just talk to her yeah?"

"Fine…" She says paying her own meal, "Here you go and thank you, it was delicious."

"Come by anytime you want. It was nice meeting you." He sees smiling brightly at her.

"Yeah, you too." Naomi says smiling back and making her way to the exit.

She leans on the wall next to Emily, mimicking her position. They stay in silence for a while, until the blonde decides to end it, "Listen Emily, if I did something wrong you can tell me. I would like to know." She says with sincerity in her voice and concern.

Emily lifts her head up to look at Naomi, biting her lips nervously, "I'm sorry I was rude to you." She says taking a deep sigh, "I don't take it very well when others feel the need to pay for my things."

Naomi nods at her, "Hm, I can understand that. I don't take it very well either." She says making Emily look surprised at her, and decides to go on, "But you were so nice to me that my first instinct was to pay for the meal, as a sort of thank you."

After hearing this, the red head gives her a small smile, "I appreciate that Naomi, thank you."

Naomi smiles softly at her, "Sure, don't mention it." She says and Emily looks directly at her, "Maybe I'll explain it to you someday? The reason why, I mean." The read head asks a bit afraid.

"Sounds good, I'll be waiting. Also, I was told I'm a great listener, so you should take the chance." The blonde smirks giving her a wink.

Emily chuckles at her, "Great, I was worried I would push you away with my weird behaviour."

"What? No way, that wouldn't happen. Weirdos should stick together." Naomi says, making the red head chuckle, "Ok, good to know then." She says and they laugh together.

"Well, I have to go. At this time my mom might already be having fume coming out of her ears." Emily says making Naomi laugh, "Ahah, I bet that's an amazing picture for one to see."

Emily nods, "Sure, sure. Marvellous even, like a rare kind of beast!" She says with a playful tone, "Better hurry up, before she sets the salon on fire."

"Alright, I should go too." Naomi says and they both stand a couple of seconds on the street, before leaning in awkwardly to give each other a kiss on the cheek.

"So…" The blonde says a bit nervous, "Ahm, we'll talk later?"

"Yes, yes, of course. Call me anytime you want." Emily says nervous as well, "Or message me. Which way you prefer, it's fine by me."

"Great! Take care then and good luck with your, ahm… flaming dragon!" Naomi says jokingly earning a throaty laugh from the red head, and ending up laughing as well.

* * *

 **AN: Ok it's done. I hope you liked it and as always, any reviews will be most welcomed! Until next chapter ;)**


	6. My Saviour

**AN: Hello there! I'm back! (please don't hit me for taking soooo long to update this, but I hope that this chapter makes up for it)**

 **Moving on! Thanks to everyone that has followed, favourited and reviewed these past few months, and my usual big thank you's and special mentions that go to "mynameislizzie" , "TeenAgeRiot99" and "BelinhaM". You girls are amazing! 3**

 **Well then, on with the story!**

 **Have a nice reading and I hope you'll like it! (if you are still with me that is)**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 6**

 **EMILY**

As soon as I said goodbye to the beautiful blonde with whom I had the pleasure to have lunch, my smile falters. I sighed to the _**"pleasant"**_ prospect of my mother waiting for me outside the salon.

"What took you so long Emily?" She asks with her usual authority and I have to bite my tongue to stop me from mimicking her voice in a childish way.

"I'm allowed to have lunch am I not?" I answer rolling my eyes and passing right by through her into the salon.

"Of course!" She says more gently, "I was just worried, you usually get done quicker."

I look at her with raised eyebrows, "Well that's a first." I say with sarcasm, dropping my bag on the sofa and making my way to behind the counter.

My mother steps closer in front of me, "What do you mean? I always worry about you honey."

I squint at her with a puzzled face for a couple of seconds and then lower my head, "It doesn't seem like it." I mutter under my breath.

She sighs and says with a bit of a desperate voice, "I wish you would see that I only want what's best for you."

I raise my head up again, "And what would that be?"

"Well… Normal things. Letting go of your medication, finding a good and kind boyfriend, to have a husband and a family of your own."

I scoff and shake my head, "Oh god… I should knew this talk would lead this way."

"Emily I…" She starts to say but I immediately cut her off, "First of all, I need my medication because right now it's the only thing that makes me feel sane."

She again tries to say something but I go on, "Secondly, I'm not interested to go near anyone with a dick!" I spat earning a shocked look from her, "Language Emily! I am your mother!"

"Then you should start acting like one!" I say raising my voice, "I've told you many times that I like women, that I wanna date women! Why can't you just understand that? Are you fucking daft?!"

She flashes me a death stare and I swear I can almost see fume coming out of her ears and nostrils, I'm sure my face is now as pale as chalk and I swallow hard regretting what I just said.

After a couple of seconds that seem like an eternity, she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, "Sweetie…" She says with a forced smile that scares me even more that her angry face, "We already talked about that subject. Those… _**"feelings"**_ you think you have, they're not natural, therefore not real."

I just stare at her with my mouth open in disbelief, I just don't have the strength for this kind of fight anymore.

She must have interpreted my silence as an agreement because she goes on, "I thought your appointments with Dr. Jane were helping you get better. Should I look for another doctor?"

After this, I know what I should have said. I wanted to scream and tell her that me liking girls is not a disease, and that the purpose of my therapy sessions is not to cure me from that, but to help me understand myself better and accept me as I am.

But what good would that do? What's the point at this rate? I just want her to shut up! So, against my will, all I can answer her is, "There's no need to get another doctor, she is helping me."

"Then I don't understand why you keep insisting that you have those dirty feelings." She states with genuine confusion.

"You know what? I just wanted to annoy you. You know how sometimes the meds make me cranky. It's best if you ignore me and go do your job, in a few minutes you'll have a costumer coming."

She smiles pleased at me, "Alright! I'm glad we sorted this out, I'll go inside and prepare the room."

"Ok I'll let you know when the costumer gets in." I say giving her a small smile, but the truth is, I just want to sit in the corner alone and cry.

* * *

 **NAOMI'S POV**

"Mom?" I ask as I return to the shop, "Are you in there?"

"I'm at the back honey!" I hear her call and go to her, "Ah there you are love, I was wondering if you had been kidnapped by your new friend." She says smiling at me, "Did you have fun?"

I give her a wide grin, "I did actually! Very much."

"Emily must really be a very special lady to leave you with a face like that." She says chuckling.

I blush instantly, "What? How do you know I was with her?"

She scoffs, "Please Naomi, don't underestimate me." She says, "I've been your mother for 23 years now. That face doesn't fool me."

"Yes fine, I was with Emily." I chuckle at her smug smile, "Oh! Since we're on the subject, do you know her mother?"

"What? Why would I know the girl's mother?" She asks me confused, "Apparently she's the one who runs the salon where Emily works."

My mom looks surprised at me, almost terrified, "The one belonging to Jenna Fitch?! Down the street?"

"Ahm yes, why?" I ask a bit worried, "Something wrong with that?"

"Well I wouldn't know personally, but some of our costumers used to say she wasn't a very pleasant person. A real cunt it seems."

"Oh… I mean, Emily mentioned it but, you know, I thought she was half-kidding. I didn't take it very seriously."

"Ah don't feel bad about it, you couldn't possibly know." My mom tries to reassure me.

I give her a small smile, "Yes you're right, but…" I say but she interrupts me, "No "buts", the best thing you can do is being a good friend."

"Hm yeah I could send her a message to see if everything is ok?"

My mom shakes her head, "You kids nowadays always relying on your phones and _**"facegrams"**_!"

I raise my eyebrow at her, "Our what? Oh! You mean _**"Facebook"**_ and _**"Instagram"**_ _?"_

"Whatever, that's not the point! Just go at the salon at the end of the day and wait for her outside, I'm sure she will like to see you."

I ponder on that for a while, "Hm you're right, it's the best option." I say smiling to her, "Thanks mom!"

"Anytime dear! Now help me with those flowers over there, enough talking and more work." She says smiling back at me.

* * *

Ok it's finally time to wrap it all up for today and go home, which means I have a visit to pay to someone.

"I'm already done with these boxes, so I think I'll go now to see if I can still meet up with Emily."

"Yes go right ahead! I just have somethings to finish and then I'll be off as well." She says waving for me to go, "I'll close up don't worry."

"Alright I'll see you tomorrow!" I say stepping outside the store but stop for a couple of seconds and go back inside, "Do you really think it's a good idea for me to go there without saying anything to her first?"

My mom stops what she's doing to look straight at me, "Naomi, just go. Don't overthink it, you know that doesn't do you any good."

I take a small breath, "Yeah, you're right. I'm going then!" I say stepping outside the door once more.

"I'm always right!" I hear her say behind me, "Don't get too cocky!" I say right back at her, giggling while I go down the street.

I'm getting closer to the salon but I stop once I see Emily outside the door, but it seems she's not alone. A taller woman is with her, it must her mother. I lean against the wall next to me trying to understand what's happening, they seem to be fighting.

In any other day or year of my life I would never step in on a conversation between people I don't even know, actually, not even between people I _**do**_ know. But seeing Emily like this, I just couldn't stand there watching.

"Excuse me…" I say a bit afraid approaching them, "Emily is that you? Oh my god, I haven't seen you in ages!"

"Ahm… And whom exactly are you?" The taller woman asks me with an obviously forced smile.

"Oh I'm sorry, where are my manners!" I say offering my hand to shake, "Naomi Camp…stone!" I clear my throat trying to control my anxiety while she shakes my hand, and stopping myself from saying **"THANK GOD!"** when she lets go of me.

"Naomi Campstone." The woman repeats and turns to Emily, "You never told me anything about her. Were you at the same school?"

I notice that Emily has gone awfully quiet so I end up speaking for her, "We were yes, god I haven't seen you in ages! We definitely have so much to catch up!"

"Yes, I would love that…" She finally says looking up at me with a small smile, "Well I am free right now so maybe we could go get some coffee? On me of course." I ask smiling at her.

She looks at me for a bit before answering and I swear my heart is leaping on my chest with anticipation, "Yeah, coffee sounds good. Is it ok if I go home later?" She asks turning to her mother.

"Alright you girls go and have fun." She says looking at me and then again at Emily, "But we'll finish this conversation when you get back."

She nods back at her mom and looks at me, "Shall we go then?" She asks me with a hoarse voice and all I want to do is to pick her up and hold her close to me like a child, but since that would be weird and inappropriate, especially because her mother is right here, I end up offering my arm instead for her to take, "Yep, I know the perfect place!"

* * *

When I know we're far away enough so that her mother can't see us, I decide to talk, "So… I guess it wasn't exactly easy when you got back from lunch with me?"

"Yeah… You got that right." She says still looking down, "But it's nothing new anyway…"

I see we're near a bench so I stop walking and sit down, "Why did we stop?" She asks me confused.

"Ah good, now I can look at those pretty eyes of yours."

She chuckles giving me a shy smile and turning her head away from me, but I take her hand in mine, "Seriously Emily, look at me, please?"

She sighs but ends up doing it and I'm glad I am sitting down because if not I think the wind would blow me down just by looking at her big brown eyes filled with sadness. It's almost as if, no, not almost, I _**am**_ sad as well. I'm sad because she's hurting so bad. But this is not about me right now, so get a grip Campbell!

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" I ask with a gentle voice and she shakes her head "no".

"Ok, do you want to sit down?" I ask again smiling, patting the spot next to me.

"Yeah…" She says sitting down and moves closer to me, resting her head on my shoulder.

I'm not a touchy person, I rarely give hugs and I'm not very good at showing people that I like them through physical contact. Without exaggerating, right now the only person in my life with whom I'm able to do that is my mom, and even with her sometimes it's hard for me.

But… Being here with Emily when she is so sad and fragile, it feels natural. As if we've always known each other. It also feels warm and scary, but it's a good kind of scary. Not the fear I have when I go out at night alone and there's the possibility that I might get attacked or even worse. Nor the fear I have when I reach the end of the month scared that I may not be able to pay all my bills.

No… This fear, it's the kind that makes me wonder what we'll happen next, and it makes me question myself that maybe with this girl next to me, being a touchy person is not so bad after all.

"Naomi?" Emily says waking me up from my deep thoughts, "Yes, sorry, I was spacing out."

She giggles lightly, "I know, I've been looking at you for a couple of seconds now."

I turn around to look at her, "Why didn't you say anything?" I ask her and give a chuckle.

"I don't know, I think I just was enjoying the silence."

I nod, "Oh ok, I can understand that." I smile gently and say, "It's good to see you lighten up a bit."

"Thanks. If it weren't for you I would be by the gutter right now." She says without batting an eye.

"Please don't say that." I ask sounding more like a pleading, "It's true Naomi, you were my saviour today. I don't know how to thank you enough."

I shake my head, "You don't have to. Seeing you feel better is good enough."

She flashes me a broad smile and my heart feels warmer at the sight of her, "That's very kind of you to say."

I shrug my shoulders, "You deserve it, it's that simple." I say smiling back.

"Do I?" She asks and I feel like she's challenging me, "Yes… You do."

"Why?" She keeps insisting, "I don't know. Because you're kind, and funny and… And I like you that's all!" I say blushing profusely as soon as I realize my words.

"You like me? You don't even know me that well." She says and this time I lose a little bit of my patient, "Jesus Emily! What more do you want me to say?"

I regret it as soon as I see her looking sadly at me, "I'm sorry… That came out wrong." I run my fingers through my hair nervously and sigh, "Why the persistent inquisition though?" I ask looking right at her, "Do you really need me to reassure you how amazing you are?"

She adverts her eyes away from me once more and whispers something that I can't understand, "Sorry could you repeat it?"

Her big brown eyes are looking straight at me now and I almost got lost in them and didn't hear what she said again, "I do, I do need you to reassure me." She tells me with an honest but frail voice.

I nod at her, "Alright." I say holding her hand in mine once again, "Then I'll make it my mission to tell you how special you are every time you need to hear it."

"And how will you know when that is?" She asks a bit insecure, squeezing my hand gently.

"You will just have to trust me." I say smirking and get a confident smile from her, "I already do." She says and moves closer to me, resting her head again on my shoulder, but this time keeping or hands together.

We stay like this for a while longer in silence, until she speaks again, "The sky is beautiful tonight…"

"Yeah…" I say, turning my head to look down at her, "Beautiful."

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 **AN: That's it, I hope you had fun. Any complaints just leave a review, I'll give attention to all! See you next time, hopefully the wait won't be too long :)**


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